Just like that, Kira’s first semester at Duel Academy ended happily.
He kept his spot as top of the class in the finals, no surprise there. Although Misawa tried hard to catch up and briefly looked like he might, he still ended up second.
And that’s just the written test. In actual duels, there were only two words to describe Kira now—
As it happened, the teacher for the practical finals was an old acquaintance—the same sunglasses-wearing examiner from his entrance test.
"So it’s you again, professor?" Kira was surprised as he took his place on the field. "Looks like we’re fated to meet. Please take care of me again."
The examiner kept a poker face.
Who the hell wants to be fated to meet you?
At least the process, while painful, ended quickly.
Thanks to the "Protector of the Sanctuary" and "Morphing Jar" combo, the professor was out of cards by Kira’s second turn.
Kira politely put away his duel disk and bowed. "Thank you for the lesson, professor."
The examiner wondered—did this guy let him win during the entrance test, or did his ability to break the game just level up that much in one semester?
And so, the happy first semester ended successfully.
But that didn’t mean it was time to relax. Kira packed his vacation full, and the most important thing was—it was time for the Duel City tournament.
The half-year promise he’d made with the president was down to about a week. According to the president, he’d be competing in person this year, making the tournament tougher than ever.
If things went well, it looked like Kira would face the president himself.
So, with that in mind, Kira visited KaibaCorp again, checking the inventory for anything new or interesting.
After all, the Duel Monsters world was vast, and even the top card company couldn’t have everything in stock all the time. Many cards were reprints, new releases, or in circulation, so the stock was always changing.
This time, he picked up a new Monarch.
It was the Water Monarch—Mobius the Frost Monarch. When Tribute Summoned, it can destroy up to two Spell or Trap cards on the field. A great backrow clearer, and the Monarch with the highest play rate in its heyday.
He also grabbed a few more Cyber cards.
"Going into Cyber Dragons now?" Mokuba sat nearby, chin in hand, watching him pick cards.
Kira smiled. "Research purposes."
He knew that Cyber Dragons were one of the most promising archetypes of the era. There was so much to develop, and their many forms and support cards were strong in the current meta, even if they’d be mediocre in the future.
"Expanding to new projects again, huh?" Mokuba nodded with a smile. "I really wonder what goes on in your head sometimes.
So many new archetypes and strategies—did you know you’re famous in our research department now?"
Ever since Kira had given several departments new directions, his name had spread. Departments competed to request him, hoping for guidance from the master.
It was said that even a few words from him could advance research by years.
Of course, rumors were exaggerated. He couldn’t give advice on every project or archetype.
Some archetypes hadn’t gotten support in 20 years—what could he say except "Drop it, this isn’t going anywhere."
While he had a moment, Kira mentioned to Mokuba his last trip to the Spirit World using the Link System.
Mokuba was surprised. "Wait, you discovered that?"
So going to the Spirit World was a built-in function, not something he’d stumbled across?
"Dimensional travel was always one of the Link System’s hidden features in development. We just hadn’t opened it to testers yet, but you figured it out yourself..."
Mokuba looked at him with admiration.
"You really are full of surprises."
"The Link System...was always designed to connect to the Spirit World?"
Kira was again amazed by KaibaCorp’s black technology. But then, remembering they’d already opened a path to the underworld years ago, connecting to the Spirit World didn’t seem that shocking.
"Yeah. New Doma’s organization has set up many formations in the Spirit World. Evidence suggests they’re building an unprecedentedly huge army. We can’t just let them be."
Mokuba paused, frowning.
"And more importantly, we’ve recently found another clue. Doma has invaded countless worlds and spirit dimensions—not just to enslave or absorb spirits’ power.
It seems they’re searching for something."
"What is it?" Kira asked.
Mokuba didn’t answer, just stood up and pulled up an image on his tablet.
An ancient stone slab, weathered and worn, its surface polished smooth by time. Carved into it was an upside-down pyramid with intricate designs. In the center was the mysterious, majestic Eye of Horus.
Kira had to admit—this time he was really surprised.
"That’s the Millennium Puzzle!?"
Is New Doma searching for the Millennium Puzzle?
"Not necessarily." Mokuba shook his head. "Could just be something that looks similar. But this is what they’re after—the spirits call it the ’Sealing Device.’ It’s our only lead.
We’re speeding up Link System development partly for this reason." Follow current ɴᴏᴠᴇʟs on novᴇlfire.net
Mokuba paused, then added:
"You know. The president wants to see for himself if that’s what he thinks it is."
A few years ago, in the Bonds Beyond Time movie, after the Pharaoh returned to the afterlife, the Millennium Puzzle broke into pieces again, buried deep underground.
President Kaiba dug up every piece and built a space station to reassemble the puzzle, hoping to contact his rival in the afterlife.
At the end of the movie, as Yugi faced a crisis, the Pharaoh returned through the puzzle, but after he left again, the reassembled puzzle turned into gold light and vanished.
Kira looked thoughtfully at the image on the slab.
Could it be...the Pharaoh is coming back again?